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Modern Heroes Pay Tribute To Battle Of Yorktown
(October 25, 2010) | 
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LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (Oct. 22, 2010) -- "The battle,
sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the
active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we
were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire
from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and
slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard
on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable; and let it
come! I repeat, sir, let it come,” said Patrick Henry during
his rousing speech March 23, 1775.
Men and women of the Colonial states craved independence
through harsh winters, long battles and limited supplies as
they fought with a vengeance. They fought for a purpose and
wanted no less than freedom of religion, speech and press,
and for nearly seven years they raged war against a superior
military.
One of the battles that stunned the world was in 1781, as
the great British Gen. Charles Cornwallis requested a
cease-fire at the battle of Yorktown, and more than 8,000
Soldiers and Sailors surrendered to the American and French
armies commanded by Gen. George Washington.
To mark the 229th anniversary of America’s decisive
Revolutionary War victory at Yorktown, an official Yorktown
Day parade began at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 19 along Yorktown’s Main
Street. Airmen, Soldiers, Marines and Sailors marched
through the streets of the historic town. At the end of the
patriotic parade a wreath was placed on the Yorktown Victory
Monument in memory of those who fought and died during the
siege of Yorktown in 1781.
The modern day observance traces its roots to 1922 when the
Daughters of the American Revolution began an annual
wreath-laying ceremony, which set the tradition for the
current Yorktown Day. Today, the Yorktown Day Association,
composed of 13 civic, patriotic and government
organizations, coordinates the traditional commemorative
events. | |
By USAF Sr. Airman Jarrod Chavana
633rd Air Base Wing
Copyright 2010
Provided
through DVIDS
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